Cruz Downplays Importance of Gay Marriage Issue

Republican White House hopeful Ted Cruz, whose rise in the polls has been largely due to the support of religious conservatives, recently told a campaign donor that outlawing gay marriage is not a “top-three priority” for him.

While the comment may be a strategically smart tactic in the Texas senator’s presidential bid, it could erode some of his appeal to evangelicals and other conservatives, according to Politico.

Newsmax reported that during a question-and-answer session at a Dec. 9 fund-raising event, the donor asked: “So, would you say it’s like a top-three priority for you, fighting gay marriage?” The candidate replied: “No. I would say defending the Constitution is a top priority. And that cuts across the whole spectrum — whether it’s defending First Amendment, defending religious liberty, stopping courts from making public-policy issues that are left to the people.”

Cruz argued that the Supreme Court exceeded its authority in legalizing same-sex marriage nationwide, and that individual states should decide the issue. “People of New York may well resolve the marriage question differently than the people of Florida or Texas or Ohio,” he told the donor. “That’s why we have 50 states — to allow a diversity of views. And so that is a core commitment.”

Newsmax pointed out that Cruz vowed during an interview on National Public Radio in June to put the gay-marriage issue “front and center” in his campaign.